Hmmmmm....

It's been a while since we've had a good discussion on here. SO... I'm thinking it's time to stir the pot a little and get a nice heated debate going if people feel like getting involved.


What approach do you take to this whole nutrition in Crossfit thing? Do you big one of the big 2 that's crossfit approved? Do you do your own thing, do you combine diets, what exactly do you do? Why do you do it? Why is your diet better (I mean you obviously feel it is since you're doing that over something else)? Most importantly does it work and how do you know it works?

I can only imagine some of the things that will be said... ex Hubie and his 369 FGB or Moe and her travel from size 6 to a 0. Say what you feel like saying, just be prepared to back it up since there are nerds on the board like dave, hubie and myself.

heres not a good discussion but a little bit of truth. When i was zoning, i felt like i didnt eat enough. When i tried paleo it was hard to find food that was acceptable, and while "failing" at both I just didn't like the feeling of failure. So, now I just keep it simple. I"m not a dumbass (thats debatable), i understand what type of foods my body needs. I need some carbs, but unstarchy ones, protein that is lean, and unsaterated fats. Honestly i dont even monitor my fat content any more but I know that it is filling and Im not concerned about losing weight so screw it. I just have a balanced meal, I drink a lot of water, and I don't think twice about it. Ive never been happier, more confident in my ability and overall energized. I have gas in the tank when Im done with wods sometimes. I went on a family vacation and tried to keep within my limits, but when I had a piece of pizza, or a hot pretzel, i knew I wasnt eating what I was supposed to, but realized that these few bad meals would not kill more or substantially damage my overall health. I know when I eat bad, and it doesn't crush me. I dont eat a peice of pizza and fall off the wagon and eat the whole thing with a 2 liter of pepsi and 20 wings. I dont have a beer and then want to finish the twelve pack. Moderation my friends. In everything. I guess you could say my eating style is daoism, a balance of everything with no overall weights or counting calories. If the zone works for you, more power to you. If the paleo is your cup of tea, even better. I realize the majority of my day revolves around me scoring well on tests and writing papers and I really dont have time or energy to watse on freaking out over my diet. I eat quality food, drink water, and show up to work out. Ive never been happier.

I have done very little in the way of experimentation with my diet since starting Crossfit...as you know Zone worked exceptionally well for me...but I have found that it is difficult to keep up. It's easy to stick to the concept of zone...ie. never eating protein, carbs or fat alone without the other two...but the weighing and measuring aspect is difficult for me to keep up for an entire day...morning and afternoon are the easiest, but late in the day I tend to lose it.

I will say that I don't feel as lean as I did when I was strictly zoning with 11 blocks (or sometimes less)...performance-wise I have a hard time judging whether I can attribute good and bad workout days to the types of food I have eaten. Like I said, I don't feel quite as lean as I did a month ago, but I do feel stronger and that may be a tradeoff I have to make. When I felt my leanest, I definately did not feel my strongest...but in the past month I have absolutely noticed my strength and body weight wod's improving. I am not sure whether its just because I am eating a little more, or because of the training...probably a little of both.

I will be trying to go strict again with Zone, although I would be interested to find out how Paleo effects me and my overall performance...Chuck, maybe you can help explain to me exactly how Paleo works so I can decide if it sounds like something I would like to experiment with, although I think that it may be more restrictive than I really want to go. In general, I would rather restrict portions than variety.

I zone, but I do eat decent food. My carbs come from apples, oranges, bananas, and corn. I know its not the best, but it is better then Doritos and Wheat Bread (god damn I love Doritos.)

The last few weeks I upped my fat intake to 2X blocks. I think it has helped my strength during the entire wods. I also have been really good about getting my 8 hours of sleep and taking plenty of rest days. The only way to grow in performance is to properly get your rest!

agreed hubie. on the doritos and rest days. both are awesome.

I'm definitely on the same page with Zach.

I honestly love Paleo. It truly works for me, my performance has gone up and weight has come down. I'm a solid 150, coming into cfb at 145, then gaining 10lbs and overall one size bigger. I couldn't be happier with all the help I've received.

I'm super passionate about nutrition bc it's something I've always struggled with it, and now that I don't have to anymore.. I couldn't be more pleased. Like Zach, I do not watch my fat intake, because that's whats fueling me largely.. I watch the protein because I was eating double the amount needed and felt like shit, and pretty low on the carbs for what I was used to.

And it works. I also combine bodybuilding style nutrition, ie. protein shakes, glutamine.. but am not regular on either of these. I think it was when I stopped doing so many shakes and eating tons of protein when the fat decided to come off. Overall I think I was eating less with paleo and the shakes probably spiked my insulin, which was not helping me get to where I am now. I am considering incorporating it back in, but before/after workouts. I have also been using creatine a couple times/wk consistently.. but when it's out, it's out. The shakes will hopefully help me on the days I need a little more protein, I haven't been eating quite as much and want to maintain my body/performance and positive mood.

I have also noticed that I get really sick when I go off and eat things in large amts for a short time span. Overall, it won't kill me, but it binds up my stomach like none other. A mistake that was made on xmas and valentines day... never to be made again. I can have a fucking cookie whenever, but not 5 along with that dairy laden piece of cake in an hour span. Yea, I paid for that.. and it sucked because I love my grandmas processed carby/ dairy laden delights.

Oh and I was eating fast food once or twice/week consistently, but now I'm off that.. funny that progress was still made. Pull ups are at 7 now, getting closer to breaking my old pr. And feel like it might happen this week.

It's my birthday today, and so far I've celebrated 3 times to date, with 2 more times coming up.. I guess you could say I've been mainly on a paleo sabatical during these celebrations, but I definitely do not go apeshit and am able to make paleo happen whenever I can, as much as I can.. minus the cake.

Diana said apeshit. Such a great term and it should be brought back.

So should the following:

1. That guy is a "no talent ass clown"

2. That was completely "tits in the face"

3. That went over "like a fart in church"

4. It's "hotter than two rats f***ing in a wool sock"

5. It "takes a village to raise an idiot"